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Mercer Street construction starts; what about South Park Bridge?

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray and federal Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood were among the dignitaries Wednesday to celebrate the start of construction on Seattle’s Mercer Corridor Project.

The first phase of the Mercer project, which will convert one-way eastbound Mercer Street into a two-way boulevard with three traffic lanes in each direction through the heart of up-and-coming South Lake Union, was able to move forward after receiving a $30 million federal stimulus grant under a program created by Murray, who chairs the Senate transportation appropriations committee.

Speaking from a tent at the corner of Mercer Street and Westlake Avenue North, Murray said: “This investment is a critical piece of Seattle’s transportation infrastructure. It’s going to cut down on commute time. It will help our local businesses grow and it will help clean up that Mercer mess. Most importantly … it will help put people back to work.”

The Mercer project competed against the South Park Bridge, another of the area’s critical infrastructure projects, for federal stimulus money under the TIGER grant program (Transportation Investments Generating Economic Recovery). The 79-year-old bridge, which was the main transportation link for the community in Southwest Seattle, closed June 30 for safety reasons. It also served as freight route.

County officials have applied for a $36 million grant during a second round of TIGER grant funding. Seattlepi.com asked Murray Wednesday how she liked the bridge’s chances.

The first time around, the county had no financial plan to cover any of the bridge replacement’s $130 million price tag. Since then, County Executive Dow Constantine has led an effort that’s raised $90 million in commitments. Murray said that should help make the bridge more competitive.

Some saw Mercer’s award as Paul Allen’s Vulcan in South Lake Union getting priority over a working class neighborhood that depended on the bridge.

“When I was here a while back…and we talked about South Park Bridge, I said the community has to come together at every single level to put the funding forward and begin the project in a way that I can go back to Washington, D.C., and fight for the final part of that project. The community has come together at every level,” she said.

“We are hopeful that that project will show the federal government it has done all what we asked it to do.”

When LaHood was asked if he’d had a chance to tour the bridge while in town, he said: “I’ve been hearing about it all morning. I think I’ll take a ride over there and take a look at it on my way.” (His spokeswoman later confirmed he stopped to see it).

In speaking with reporters, LaHood said: “Everybody here has bent my ear about it, and obviously we have taken note of it. And I know that will continue to be a priority for the community and we’ll take a careful look at it.”

Flanking public officials, which included Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, Gov. Chris Gregoire and Congressman Jim McDermott, were rows of laborers in hardhats and neon vests, who came to show support for the estimated 1,200 jobs the Mercer project will support over the next three years.

Even they’re concerned about the future of the South Park Bridge. That’s because many of their union members live in the South Park area and relied on the bridge to get to work. Some workers on the Mercer project will come from South Park and Southwest Seattle and will have to take a detour to get to work, said Pedro Espinoza, a labor representative with the Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters, who was at Wednesday’s event.

“It’s important for us to get something out there to help that community,” he said.

For 40 years, officials have debated how to fix the “Mercer mess.” The Mercer-Valley couplet no longer functions the way it was intended, and congestion has worsened with the transformation of South Lake Union into a biotech hub with more jobs and residences. On the east end, traffic headed west from the freeway has to weave through complicated intersections on Fairview Avenue North to reach Valley Street, creating bottlenecks. A reconfigured Mercer Street will allow drivers to take a more direct route to Seattle Center and the waterfront.

Some 80,000 vehicles travel through the corridor each day.

“The Mercer corridor moves some of the most innovative workers and businesses in our nation, whether they’re searching for a cure for cancer or redefining e-commerce. It’s going to pave the way for our future,” Gov. Gregoire said.

The Seattle Department of Transportation plans a second phase of the Mercer project that will transform Mercer into three lanes in both directions from Dexter Avenue North to the waterfront. The new Mercer Street also will serve as a connector to the planned state Route 99 tunnel portal.

The first phase of the Mercer project originally was estimated to cost $190 million. But the lowest bid on the construction work from contractor Gary Merlino Construction came in at $47 million — 23 percent below the engineer’s estimate. The full cost now stands at $164 million.

Note: This is a seattlepi.com reader blog. It is not written or edited by the P-I. The authors are solely responsible for content. E-mail us at newmedia@seattlepi.com if you consider a post inappropriate..